Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations require the licensing of spaceports and launch vehicles, which includes the assessment of environmental impacts. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program’s ACRP Web-Only Document 51: Commercial Space Vehicle Emissions Modeling presents a user-friendly tool for practitioners to estimate the emissions associated with commercial space vehicle activity. Supplementary materials to the document include an Emissions Example Information & Users Guide , th...

In the process of reducing  sustainable alternative jet fuels ( SAJF), emissions of other pollutants may also be reduced, which could be significantly beneficial to airports. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 35: State of the Industry Report on Air Quality Emissions from Sustainable Alternative Jet Fuels captures the current status of knowledge to reduce carbon dioxide emissions using SAJF.   These reductions are not yet well defined, leaving airports unable...

With the airport industry's introduction and early adoption of safety management systems (SMS), safety processes are taking on a more proactive way of doing the business while continuously improving safety. This shift in approach will drive safety research in the near and long-term future. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 50: Research Roadmap on Safety Issues reveals evidence of this shift, with input from the industry clearly indicating that more detailed guidance on...

The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 42: Toolkits and Resource Library for Airports and Unmanned Aircraft Systems provides supplemental material to Volumes 1 , 2 , and 3 of ACRP Research Report 212: Airports and Unmanned Aircraft Systems .

Knowing where people are at different times of the day potentially enables the design of airspace routes that minimize the environmental impact to a shifting population on the ground. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 48: Evaluating the Use of Spatially Precise Diurnal Population Data in Aviation Noise Studies examines the potential role of spatiotemporal population data in aviation noise studies. Aviation noise analysis has traditionally focused on modeling the noise ...

The administration and human resources functions within an airport can experience great challenges as airports grow, diversify, experience changing priorities, bring in new technologies, or change in other ways. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 49: Research Roadmap on Airport Administration & Human Resource Issues recommends priorities and timing, sets a research strategy, and provides a rationale for the research recommendations. Supplemental materials with this ...

As the frequency of commercial space operations and number of licensed launch sites in the United States continue to grow rapidly, accurately assessing the impacts of propulsion noise and sonic booms on surrounding communities will become even more critical. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 47: Commercial Space Operations Noise and Sonic Boom Measurements develops a well-documented, high-fidelity database of acoustic measurements acquired using a consistent data colle...

When exposed to certain foods or fluids, recyclables arriving on international flights are required to be quarantined due to potential contaminants. As a result, almost every country worldwide prescribes sterilization, incineration, or other disposal methods for these contaminated recyclables. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program's ACRP Web-Only Document 46: Recovering International Recyclables from In-Flight Service finds that supply chains, advanced stakeholder engagement, value chain collabora...

Airports must maintain a safe and efficient facility while considering environmental impacts. Though traditional environmental challenges such as noise and water quality remain, several new themes are emerging, including energy management, sustainability, resiliency, and wildlife management. Airports will need guidelines and practices to help them address these pressing issues, and the first step in the process is to identify knowledge gaps and research needs. The TRB Airport Cooperative Research Program...

Barriers, berms, buildings, and natural terrain may affect the propagation of aircraft noise by shielding or reflecting sound energy. If terrain and manmade structures obstruct the line‐of‐sight between the source and the receiver, then sound energy will be attenuated at the receiver. This attenuation increases with the terrain and structures’ size and proximity to either the source or the receiver. If gaps exist in the terrain or structures, then the potential benefits of acoustical shielding will be su...